Carman & RM of Dufferin Sign

It’s new, it’s innovative and it’s exciting.

That’s the consensus from town of Carman Mayor Brent Owen, Rural Municipality of Dufferin Reeve George Gray, and the heads of Winkler based technology firm Valley Fiber as the group met Friday morning to sign a deal bringing high-speed fiber optic internet service to the region by the end of 2020.

“Our residents have asked for faster, more reliable internet. Fiber optic technology is the answer, and we are pleased to move this forward to benefit both personal and business sectors,” said Owen.

Carman residents will be able to officially receive a dedicated fiber connection to the home in the year 2020. The service will provide residents and businesses with a minimum of 25 Mbps download and a minimum of 5 Mbps upload at a cost comparable to other competitors. Higher speed packages will also be available. Both the town and RM council’s agreed the higher speeds were needed in the region.

“It’s really important we have access to fast internet to offer prospective companies interested in setting up shop,” said Tyler King, Carman/Dufferin Economic Development Officer. “We don’t have that currently, we have pockets of fast speed and some reliability, but it’s not enough to establish and maintain a business so we need to have that. This will give us that, and it’s better than any other service offered for a dedicated fiber connection in Manitoba.”

Rural Municipality of Dufferin residents will be able to access faster web speeds through the new tower being installed in the Carman Industrial Park which will be linked to the fiber network. Additionally, residents along with some fringe areas of Carman and along the installation route will be able to receive direct fiber to the home as well.

“This is a union we’ll cherish and we’re really thrilled to be a part of the whole situation,” said Gray. “The internet is a necessity now. The speed of this internet (Valley Fiber) is going to be providing us through their fiber optics is phenomenal. People will realize the success of it and very appreciative once they’re connected.”

A fiber build is not a shared service build, which is more usual in fiber connections, but rather a dedicated service to each home and business. That means guaranteed service speeds and not up-to speeds, which limit a person’s internet capabilities. Conley Kehler, Valley Fiber General Manager, is excited about the opportunity to be expanding into the region.

“The tower in the Carman’s industrial park will service residents in Carman and Dufferin in the next few weeks. The plan is to connect this tower to fiber in spring,” stated Kehler. “Our under-serviced but innovative communities in southern Manitoba deserve better, and we are here to deliver not only better but rather best. This is truly Canada’s first fully dedicated fiber build.”

Valley Fiber is offering free installation with a one-month service agreement of their fiber optic infrastructure as they build the network in Carman. Valley Fiber will be using an Active Ethernet Network design that mimics a data centre’s build and design style. Not only will this bring the fastest and most reliable technology to the region, but it allows them to offer dedicated services. Valley Fiber will install a duct and fiber to every building from their main central office.Carman Valley Leader